Characterization of the Role of Contact Surface Temperature on the Perception of Hand-Transmitted Vibrations

摘要

Hand-transmitted vibrations to the human body may significantly influence the perception of vibrations, discomfort and fatigue. The transmission of vehicle steering wheel vibrations to the driver's body is a major cause of discomfort and fatigue. Although many studies exist on the effects of hand-transmitted vibrations on comfort, additional knowledge is required to understand how humans perceive hand-transmitted vibrations. In this study, it is shown that the temperature of the hand contact-surface can significantly change the perception of hand-transmitted vibrations by humans. A haptic device, consisting of a peltier device and a speaker, is developed. This device can produce a "pseudo-sense" to the human. Twelve human volunteers (ten men and two women, average age: 22.8±1.3) were instructed to place three finger tips on the device; then, the individuals orally responded to pre-defined haptic cognition sense questions. The senses presented to the fingers were temperatures of 20°C and 40°C under different vibrational frequencies (100 Hz, 140 Hz, 180 Hz, 220 Hz, and 260 Hz) generated by the device. The results show that the contact surface temperature can significantly change/increase the perception of hand-transmitted vibrations by volunteers. The importance of hand-transmitted vibrations in the range from 180 Hz and 220 Hz and the coldness/warmth contact surface results are significant because vehicle steering wheels transfer similar vibrations to hands. Such vibrations have the significant potential to evoke the "pseudo-sense" of vibrations and sore feelings of the human wrist, elbow, and arm. This mechanism of hand-transmitted vibration perception may significantly influence driver discomfort and fatigue.